Powered fastener driving tools are well known and commercially widely used throughout the world. Powered fastener driving tools are typically electrically powered, pneumatically powered, combustion-powered, or powder activated. Powered fastener driving tools are typically used to drive fasteners (such as nails, staples, and the like) to connect a first material, item, or workpiece to a second material, item, workpiece, or substrate.
Various known powered fastener driving tools typically include: (a) a housing; (b) a power source or supply assembly in, connected to, or supported by the housing; (c) a fastener supply assembly in, connected to, or supported by the housing; (d) a fastener driving assembly in, connected to, or supported by the housing; (e) a trigger mechanism partially in, connected to, or supported by the housing; and (f) a workpiece contactor or contacting element (sometimes referred to herein as a “WCE”) connected to or supported by the housing. The WCE is configured to engage or contact a workpiece and to operatively work with the trigger mechanism such that the WCE needs to be depressed or moved inwardly a predetermined distance with respect to the housing before activation of the trigger mechanism causes actuation of the power fastener driving tool.
Powered fastener driving tools typically have two different types of operational modes and one or more mechanisms that enable the operator to optionally select one of the two different types of operational modes that the operator desires to use for driving the fasteners. One operational mode is known in the industry as the sequential or single actuation operational mode. In this operational mode, the depression or actuation of the trigger mechanism will not (by itself) initiate the actuation of the powered fastener driving tool and the driving of a fastener into the workpiece unless the WCE is sufficiently depressed against the workpiece. In other words, to operate the powered fastener driving tool in accordance with the sequential or single actuation operational mode, the WCE must first be depressed against the workpiece followed by the depression or actuation of the trigger mechanism. Another operational mode is known in the industry as the contact actuation operational mode. In this operational mode, the operator can maintain the trigger mechanism at or in its depressed position, and subsequently, each time the WCE is in contact with, and sufficiently pressed against the workpiece, the power fastener driving tool will actuate, thereby driving a fastener into the workpiece.
As mentioned above, various known powered fastener driving tools are combustion-powered. Many combustion-powered fastener driving tools are powered by a rechargeable battery (or battery pack) and a replaceable fuel cell or cartridge. Various combustion-power fastener driving tools, battery packs, and fuel cells have been available commercially from ITW-Paslode of Vernon Hills, Ill. (a division of Illinois Tool Works, Inc., the assignee of this application).
In these combustion-powered fastener driving tools, the fuel cell or cartridge supplies fuel, and the battery provides a spark or energy to ignite the fuel. The battery powered sparks ignite the fuel to generate high pressure gas that moves the piston and attached driving blade to strike a fastener such as a nail from the nail magazine.
These combustion-powered fastener driving tools typically include a control system with a fan for supplying air and purging exhaust. Certain of these known fuel cells contain a valve that meters out the same amount of fuel each time its valve stem is depressed. Certain of these known fuel cells enable fuel dispensing when the tool is in any orientation.
Such known combustion-powered fastener driving tools are often more powerful than electrically powered, pneumatically powered, or powder activated fastener driving tools. Combustion-powered fastener driving tools are typically thus used for higher power required applications such as attaching a metal object to a concrete wall wherein the fastener has to be driven through the metal object and into the concrete wall. This is opposed to a lower powered fastener driving tool such as certain pneumatically powered tools that are used to attach one wooden member or object to another wooden member or object.
There are certain disadvantages with such known combustion powered fastener driving tools, and the fuel cells and batteries therefore. Certain known fuel cells for these tools contain a high pressure propellant gas that has a limited shelf life. Certain known batteries in these tools need to be charged relatively frequently. Certain known batteries for these tools also have reduced lifetimes due to sudden discharges.
Since such known combustion-powered fastener driving tools use such rechargeable batteries (or battery packs) and consumable fuel cells, there is a continuing need to make combustion-powered fastener driving tools more efficient.
There is also a need to provide high powered fastener driving tools that provide the same or greater power levels as combustion-powered fastener driving tools without the need for such batteries and/or fuel cells, or other known batteries and/or known fuel cells.